LEARNING TO PLAY GUITAR:Choosing a Teacher for Your Child or
Yourself

GETTING STARTED THE
RIGHT WAY

While there are multiple options for learning to play an
instrument these days, including free online lessons on
YouTube and other sites, and membership sites that can
take you from beginner to professional level, to get
started properly you should take lessons live and in
person with an instructor in your area. The reason is
that, at least initially, you need someone to interact
with to tell you how to hold the instrument properly,
tune it, and to check your hand placement on the
instrument. You may only need a few lessons or you may
find you need a few months of lessons to get you
started. But after some 30 years of teaching guitar and
banjo students I can tell you that beginners NEED that
kind of feedback and instruction. Unlearning a bad habit
is much harder, and ultimately more costly, that
learning to play the correct way.

This is not to imply that online
lessons, whether free or paid, are
not of benefit. The fact is that
once you have acquired some skill
with your instrument and familiarity
with general musical concepts, these
other sources of instruction can be
of great benefit. But you will
actually be teaching yourself, since
interaction with the instructors is
very limited and certainly not the
immediate feedback you will get from
a live instructor sitting three feet
away from you. The instructor can
also inspect your instrument for
proper setup and tuning to make sure
your practice is as comfortable and
pleasurable as possible. There’s
nothing worse than trying to
practice with sore fingers because
the setup (action) of the instrument
is improper, or the strings are too
heavy or worn out. (see
Choosing a guitar
for your child or yourself)
CHOOSING A SUITABLE TEACHER

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that just
because someone is a great player and has years of
experience as a performer that they will make a good
teacher. If you peruse the ads in your local paper or
online sources such as Craigslist you’ll find numerous
instructional offers touting the years of performance
experience or educational experience that an instructor
may have. Generally it means nothing. What you want is
someone who is experienced at TEACHING the instrument.
The best way to find a suitable teacher is to visit your
local music stores and ask them about lessons in your
area. It’s very beneficial to the music store owner that
you succeed in your musical endeavors since they will
usually get a new customer out of the deal. Check out
several stores in person and talk to the owner about
your interest in learning to play. If possible speak to
a few current students and ask them if they’re satisfied
with their progress.

Another option is a local private teacher or music
school. A number of professional instructors teach out
of their home studios or other small storefront. It’s
usually easier for these instructors to provide their
services to more students and maintain a steady income
from teaching if they’re not traveling around to
numerous music stores to teach. The atmosphere at
private studios is also usually much quieter and more
conducive to learning than the busy atmosphere of a big
music store. Many music stores keep a list of private
teachers with whom they work. So ask about this resource
when you visit your local music dealer.

WHAT SHOULD YOU EXPECT TO LEARN?

What exactly will you learn from
a local instructor? Most
instructors have their own
method for working with
students. Some follow their
lesson schedule very strictly
while others will modify it to
suit the needs and wants of the
student. Here are some
considerations when interviewing
a prospective teacher:

COST – Ask about lesson
fees, make-up lessons,
cancellation policy, etc and
compare this information
with other instructors in
your area. Most teachers
have done their homework and
know what the local market
is for their services. You
need to know this also.

EXPERIENCE – Your
concern about a prospective
instructor’s experience
should be related to their
TEACHING experience not
necessarily their PERFORMING
experience, unless you are
more geared toward mixing
learning to play an
instrument with learning to
entertain or perform with
your new skills.

FIRST LESSON FREE - Most
teachers in my area offer a
free lesson to get you
started and to help you
evaluate the teacher's
relative suitability to your
learning needs. This is a
good time to discuss the
teacher’s lesson schedule
and methods, and what
specifically you will be
learning.

EFFECTIVENESS – A good
instructor will give you
regular work to do relative
to your skill level to keep
you moving forward. Since
lessons are usually only 30
minutes long, it’s important
that your instructor spend
that time evaluating your
progress since the last
lesson and reviewing new
skills for you to work on.
If your instructor seems
more interested in burning
up your lesson time by
displaying their playing
skills for you, rather than
teaching you the nuts and
bolts of learning to play,
find another teacher.

SPECIFIC TUTORING - When
you first begin learning to
play an instrument you may
not know what it is that you
want or need to learn. In
such cases you are at the
mercy of the instructor. As
you progress with your
instrument you will become
more aware of areas of your
playing that need targeting.
At this point, you should
inform your instructor of
the direction you’d like to
take your lessons. If the
instructor insists on
following their own lesson
schedule, you may need to
find another instructor who
is more flexible.

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Many instructors will begin
by teaching you how to read
music along with learning to
actually play the instrument.
Trust me when I tell you that
these are TWO DISTINCT SKILLS
and do not necessarily need to
be learned concurrently. Reading
music is a desirable skill but
unless you plan to play with an
orchestra or some other
structured group, your time
would be better spent, at least
initially, in developing some
dexterity with your instrument.
You can always learn to read
music at a later time. My
purpose for discussing this
subject is that learning to read
music is a tedious process
initially and has discouraged
many a beginner who just wanted
to learn a few chords so they
could have a sing-along at the
next family reunion. Learning to
read music can also burn up a
lot of your lesson time; good
for the teacher, not so good for
your budget. Some music THEORY
is necessary to teach you how to
count and achieve stable timing
in your playing. In this case
your instructor may provide you
with a CHORD CHART to help you
count and change chords, which
is fine. Actually, in my
twenty-five years of working in
the recording studio, I can tell
you that chord charts are about
as close as professional
musicians get to standard music
notation unless we’re recording
a string section or an
orchestra. These statements are
not meant to discourage you from
learning to read music, but to
get you going more quickly in
learning to actually play your
instrument.

Generally speaking, I think
it’s much more fun and
productive to find an instructor
who will teach you to play whole
songs and not just bits and
pieces of unrelated musical
phrases. Learn some chords,
learn to count and solidify your
timing, and maybe even try to
sing a little bit ( hideout and
practice in a locked room if
you’re too shy to perform in
front of anyone ), and learn to
play songs that YOU like, not
necessarily what the instructor
likes.

Learning to play an
instrument can be an incredibly
fun as well as therapeutic
activity. If you’re not enjoying
your lessons and your practice,
or if you’re getting bored with
it, something’s wrong. Talk to
your instructor and make some
adjustments in your musical
direction. You’re more likely to
continue studying and to
progress steadily if you’re
enjoying what you’re doing.
Above all, your learning
experience should be fun and a
wonderful musical adventure. Go
for it!

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